It's Like This, Sasuke
by sesshomarousecretlove
Summary: Tell me, what exactly is the price of defeating the red dawn? -sasunaru, swearing. IN PROGRESS. Deathfic...?-
1. sasuke

It's like this;

We're standing in a field of blood, framed with a black-red stream of mangled akatsuki, straw hats sticking up like graves, robes flowing like dark smoggy waves. The swirling patterns on the thick fabric seem to run circles in my mind, all leading back to my final victory, my final loss. I can only imagine what is going through your mind.

You say something, and I listen without looking at you.

I can't look.

Not yet.

_"We... we did it sasuke." Naruto grins, blood streaming from his body. His wounds would become fatal if left alone for much longer. Perhaps they already were. "We beat all of them. E-even Itachi."_

It's like this;

After what seems like an eternity, I've gathered enough _sanity _to turn and answer, to tell you that you're right for once, when I find you on the ground, flinching, shaking. I kneel- more like fall, for my legs have given out, fucking useless things- right next to you, and I find I have the decency to hold your hand, caress your back, as you cough up blood. Your back shivers -it's so simple to ignore my own pain when you're in the same damn boat-, and I find my Itachi-complex is gone, only to be replaced by a new one. One centered all around the blonde who I'm currently laying next to, in the middle of a battlefield, we're the only two people still alive. I find myself scooting closer to you, trying to offer a bit of comfort, still not letting go of your hand.

Heh, we probably looked like lovers.

Some sort of sadistic lovers.

_"... Yeah. We did. That d-doesn't mean you're not still a... a dobe." Sasuke manages to smirk through his cracked lips, and Naruto giggles slightly in response, but it comes out more like a pained choke._

_"W-well, teme. That... goes without saying."_

It's like this;

We're still holding hands -I don't mind, we don't really have much of a reputation left to keep up anymore-, and I start to feel tingling in my fingers. I look down, only to see red and blue chakra covering my hand, healing the gashes there before moving up my arm. It crawls slowly across my chest, and I can feel the weight there lighten slightly, the chakra melds my bones back together, leaving naught but scratches and the occasional laceration to be taken care of later-

-wait.

What is the idiot doing?

_"W-what?" Sasuke whispers, Naruto locks eyes with him, and finally he's stopped smiling. _

_"... I'm re-repaying you." Understanding glints in the dark abyss of his eyes, and he tries to take his hand away, but his fingers are caught in a vice-like grip._

_"No! D-dont do this, Naruto! Please, I'll be fine, you need to... to... LET GO!!"_

It's like this;

Finally I can remove my fingers, but only because Naruto has given me all his damned chakra. Now he just looks at me with a slightly belated glint in his eyes, washed grey and tired, underneath the pain-filled pupils a sad smile flashes.

I find myself grabbing his hand again, ignoring the pain immediately following the movement, glaring at him as if daring him to die.

_"Stupid... Sasuke. Stop... crying." Naruto whispers, and the raven sniffles, huffs angrily._

_"I'm not crying! Dead last! It's raining!" Smiling wanly, Naruto slowly turns his head to the sky, never breaking contact with Sasuke's hand._

_"heh... raining..."_

It's like this;

They look up, but all they can see is the sun peeking through clouds in the sky.

_"It's... raining..."_

It's like this;

The raven is left alone, with naught but the sorrowful cries of the kitsune to keep him company.


	2. kyuubi

It's like this;

Pacing in the cage of my vessel, I can't see anything but the walls of my cell. Dammit, I want to get out and help the stupid boy! Finally a chance to prove myself to him- he never trusted me after that damned fight with the Uchiha-kit- and he won't let me out?

"_Fuck, Naruto. Let me out!" Kyuubi screams into the darkness, roaring and bashing at the bars with his claws._

"_No." the answer surprisingly clear, Naruto was nowhere in sight._

"_Why not?"_

"_It's over." Naruto says, and Kyuubi glares._

"_What do you mean it's over, I can still feel-" Something clicks. "Oh fuck. Are you okay?"_

"_Fine. …I need you to do something."_

It's like this;

He's asking me to do something. It's not what I expected, and besides, I would heal him anyway.

No, he asks me to heal the jackass traitor that hung around with the snake for god-knows-how-many years. When I ask him why, he just says,

"_Debts." Naruto whipers. Kyuubi sniffs disdainfully._

"_This isn't the time to worry about pointless shit like that."_

"_He… saved my life... I need to repay… my debts." The blondes voice was starting to fade a bit, and Kyuubi thinks this isn't good. His voice shouldn't fade like that, especially in his own mind._

"_What about you? You do know I can only h-"_

"_Yeah. I know.Please." Both kitsune sigh._

"_For you, kit. I'll do it for you."_

It's like this;

I've done as I've been told, and now, divested of most of my power, I revert to a smaller form and sit patiently in front of my bars.

We all have to die, some time or another. I can only hope this will count as a noble death. It will for Naruto, anyway, he got to go down fighting.

"_Kyuubi." The fox's head snaps up, he wasn't paying attention. There, standing in front of him, was a small blonde boy._

"_Yeah? What is it?" He's a bit thrown off; Naruto hadn't been that small in years, and he wasn't wearing that garish orange jumpsuit._

"_I have a gift for you." The high childish voice was light and airy, and Kyuubi could feel himself start to die along with his vessel._

"_What… is it? It's not another one of those stupid necklaces, is it? That was so-"Kyuubi cuts himself off as he notices the blonde picking at his seal, securely locking a finger under the chakra slip. _

"_Goodbye, Kyuubi. I bid you stay away from Konoha and her allies." Naruto offers one last smile, Kyuubi can barely stutter out an affirmative before everything blacks out._

It's like this;

I'm out, and I can only look at my vessels cooling body.

He, a human, saved my life. How do I-?

Heh. It fucking figures. Finally somebody helps me and I can't repay them.

"_Stupid kit." The fox licks the blondes peaceful face, as if trying to wake him up. When he doesn't move, the kitsune whispers in his ear, then gets up, as if to walk away. _

"_Where… where do you think you're g-going?" Sasuke whispers, never looking up, and Kyuubi turns around, grinning almost apologetically. _

"_Places to be, people to kill. Enjoy your life, Uchiha. And never forget him."_

It's like this;

Walking away from the Uchiha-boy, allowing himself to lament, Kyuubi knows he is finally free.


	3. kakashi

It's like this;

He's found them, and it's like the Valley of the End has happened all over again. Naruto is on the ground, bleeding heavily, and Sasuke is right above him, head-to-head, mouth-to-ear, whispering pointless shit they both know Naruto can't hear.

Kakashi notices things tend to repeat in his life.

"_Sasuke." Kakashi whispers, trying not to surprise his student too badly. Sasuke doesn't look up, and Kakashi gently takes him by the shoulder, turning him until they stand face to face. What he sees there makes him recoil, hissing in a breath in surprise and anger._

It's like this;

Sasuke... he's got the Mangekyou. The famed sharingan, dream of every Uchiha, power only a murderer unbound by the ties of humanity could have.

Sasuke killed a loved one. Now he's just another missing-nin. Another loss, another blood red mark on a growing list of sins, lies, deceits.

_"I... I'm sorry." Sasuke whispers, and Kakashi stares at him for a moment, before looking away._

_"Aa." _

It's like this;

Kakashi is confused. A part of him wants to shake his student and scream at him that stupid little terms and phrases like 'I'm sorry' won't fix a damned thing, but other parts want to hug him and tell him that shit happens and moving on is the best thing to do.

Fuck, Kakashi was never any good at making choices, there were other people in his team in charge of stuff like that. So he does what he always does when things stop making sense.

He asks himself,

What would Obito do?

_"Help me, Sasuke." Kakashi has a little trouble picking Naruto up, he's heavier than before. _

_"No." Sasuke whispers, and Kakashi sighs softly, managing to pull the limp body into his arms by himself. The jounin gets up and starts to walk in the general direction of Konoha. When Sasuke doesn't follow him, he pauses for a moment, just long enough to call out softly,_

_"Naruto won't be here to bring you back, so don't do anything stupid."_

It's like this;

Kakashi doesn't bother checking to see if Sasuke is following him. It doesn't really matter anymore, what more damage can that kid concieve of?

What was the point of trying to teach the Uchiha? Maybe he thought Naruto could stop Sasuke from ripping himself apart.

It worked, kinda.

_"Fire and Ice..." Kakashi says to himself, unconsciously talking aloud, "Naruto always negated Sasuke's power, I wonder..." He trails off, looking down at Naruto for a moment, "Hn..."_

_"What do you wonder?" Sasuke asks, quietly, coming up beside the jounin, "Do you wonder if I will go crazy again, go back to the sound, burn down Konoha? I... I could, you know." _

_"... Aa."_

_"Don't want to think to closely on it, eh, Kakashi? It's okay, neither do I." Sasuke is quiet then, contemplative. Kakashi doesn't mind. He has some things to consider himself._

It's like this;

I truthfully don't know what he will do, Sasuke was always a master of words and masks, I myself am vaguely surprised he's even coming back. There's nothing there for him now, besides interrogation, possibly torture and death at the hands of a village that doesn't really want a dark avenger anymore.

_"Do you think... I'm making a good decision?"_

_"About what?" Kakashi slows a bit, Sasuke seems weary, and he is injured too._

_"Going back to Konoha."_

_"It's the responsible thing." When this doesn't seem to help Sasuke any, he adds, "Thats something you could get used to."_

_"What?"_

_"Responsibility."_

It's like this;

Sasuke smiles a little and nods. He says something else, about having a lot to catch up on, but Kakashi isn't really listening.

He's too busy finally having a moment to be proud of his student for something besides fighting prowess.


End file.
